Happy Independence Day! I hope everyone has a great holiday. Here’s the news for July.
EVENTS
Nashville will once again celebrate the 4th of July downtown. For the first time ever the fireworks display will also feature drones. The pyrotechnics and lights will be synchronized to a live performance by our GRAMMY-winning Nashville Symphony.. Everything is free and open to the public. Concerts will be at First and Broadway and Ascend Ampitheater featuring headliner Chris Young along with YOLA, Girl Named Tom, Blessing Offor. The Event site will be open from 12-10 pm. The Family Fun Zone will be open from 12-5 at Walk of Fame Park. For safety, coolers are not allowed, but there will be plenty of food trucks, and businesses selling food and drink. Parking is available at the courthouse, convention center, and 5th and Broad, and there are lots of other non-car transportation options available. All event details and information can be found at visitmusiccity.com/july4th. Many businesses downtown now support the Safe Bar program, and Red Frogs volunteers will be roving to ensure people who have celebrated too much can still get home safely.
Some streets will be closed to traffic starting July 3, but WeGo will be providing convenient transportation to and from downtown including the WeGo Star train. All bus routes will operate on a Sunday schedule. The fireworks are expected to end at approximately 10 p.m., and with new extended hours, most frequent and local routes will be operating until 11:15 p.m. Because congestion may require unexpected detours downtown, customers are encouraged to consider boarding at the Elizabeth Duff Transit Center at WeGo Central (4th & Dr. Martin L. King Jr. Boulevard). The Music City Star will run at special service leaving Lebanon at 4:30 pm and departing downtown one hour after the fireworks. Train tickets should be purchased ahead of time at the WeGo Star website. Service on select bus routes will also be extended to get customers home after the fireworks.. WeGo information is available at the [WeGo website] (https://www.wegotransit.com/)
Starting July 1 Trash and recycling will be picked up starting at 6 in the morning to avoid the hottest part of the day. Residents can put trash out the night before to ensure that it is on the curb by 6 am for the collection vehicles. Trash and recycling will not be picked up on the July 4th holiday. Trash and recycling pick-up scheduled for Thursday and Friday will be picked up one day later than regularly scheduled. The annual trash schedule can be found at Metro Waste Services.
Brush Pick-up begins
- July 1 in Area 8 Green Hills, Hillsboro West End, Belmont Hillsboro, Percy Warner, Devonshire
- July 8 in Area 9 Bellevue, West Meade, Hillwood, White Bridge, Cherokee Park, Richland West End, Sylvan Park, Sylvan Heights, Hadley, Fisk Watkins Park
- July 22 in Area 10 Whites Bend, Charlotte Park, Cockrill Bend, Nations, TSU, College Heights, Germantown, Buena Vista
- July 26 in Area11 Joelton, Whites Creek, Marrowbone, Scottsboro, Bells Bend, Bordeaux, Haynes Heights, Haynes Manor
- August 1 in Area 12 Goodlettsville, Dalemere, Bellshire
Download the map and schedule at https://www.nashville.gov/departments/transportation/right-way-maintenance/brush-and-yard-waste-collection
Neighbor 2 Neighbor is hosting a Traffic + Transit panel on July 20. Moderated by District 3 Councilmember Jennifer Gamble, the event will kick off with Mayor Freddie O’Connell speaking and then include a discussion with Michael Briggs, Mayor’s Director of Transportation Planning and Courtnye Stone, NDOT Director of Communications and Policy. The panel will run from 9:30 to 12 at the South Police Precinct, 5101 Harding Place. Register at N2N.
State primary elections are fully underway. The last day to register to vote is July 2. Early voting begins July 12 and runs through July 27. The last day to request an absentee ballot is July 25, but delivery can take a couple of weeks so voters should not wait until the last minute. Anyone who will be out of town on election day or who is over the age of 65 can request an absentee ballot. Election Day is August 1. Voters can verify precinct locations at the Metro Election website . Any voter who has received a letter from the Coordinator of Elections questioning their eligibility can check their status on-line at the Tennessee Election website . A valid state issued photo ID, like an up-to-date Tennessee Driver’s License is required to vote. Student ID’s from a local university will not be accepted.The August 1 election includes federal primaries for the Senate seat currently held by Marsha Blackburn. She is challenged by Tres Wittum, Gloria Johnson, and Marquita Bradshaw. Nashville now shares three congressional districts with multiple other counties. District 5 covers the southern and eastern rim of the county. Candidates include Andy Ogles, Courtney Johnston, and Maryam Abolfazli. District 6 includes Goodlettsville, Madison, Donelson, East Nashville, and half of Hermitage. Candidates for District 6 include John Rose, Lore Bergman, Clay Faircloth, and Cyril Focht. Candidates for District 7, the northwestern third of the county, are Mark Green and Megan Barry. Many of the state house districts are uncontested in the primaries. Candidates for House District 60, formerly held by Darren Jernigan, include Chad Bobo. Christopher Huff, Tyler Brasher, Shaundelle Brooks, and John Parrish. The general election day is in November 5. More information is available at the Davidson County Election Commission website.
For anyone who wants to learn more about how our water gets cleaned and treated for drinking, MWS is accepting applications for the Fall 2024 Citizen’s Water Academy. The Fall 2024 CWS will include five interactive sessions, held in-person over the course of two and a half weeks. This is a great opportunity to learn how MWS manages water from “river to river” and I encourage you to apply. Participants will have the opportunity to interact with MWS Staff and experience the water treatment processes by touring various MWS facilities - including the state-of-the-art Research & Analytical Laboratory and the historic Omohundro Water Treatment Plant. All MWS customers are eligible, but class size is limited, and the selection process is competitive. Through the Academy, MWS hopes to build a diverse network of leaders and influencers, representative of all of Nashville, willing to and share their knowledge within the community. Participants must commit to attend all the sessions below, which will be held at various MWS facilities. The Fall 2024 dates are as follows:
- Thursday, September 26 - “Imagine a Day Without Water” at the K.R. Harrington Water Treatment Plant
- Tuesday, October 1 - “Protecting the Environment” at the Whites Creek Water Reclamation Facility
- Thursday, October 3 - “A Sustainable Future” at the Biosolids Facility
- Tuesday, October 8 - “Protecting Public Health” at the MWS Research and Analytical Laboratory
- Thursday, October 10- “The Value of Water” at the Omohundro Water Treatment Plant
ALL sessions are held from 5:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m. To apply, complete the application available online at [Citizen’s Water Academy Application].(https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSf3I32xLEwfQaf-zo_P-8L3a8gUctJEg3jQqOqGOyVhE9Ij2w/viewform) The application deadline is September 13, 2024. Applicants will be notified of acceptance no later than September 17, 2024.
The 1st & Goal Small Business Assistance Program is accepting applications. This program – supported by $2 million from the Titans and $1 million from New Nissan Stadium construction manager, Tennessee Builders Alliance (TBA) – is housed with Citizens Savings Bank and Trust Company and is anticipated to support 25 businesses annually to foster economic equality in the Nashville community.
A combination of loans and grants will be distributed through the fund to best support selected small business’s specific needs. Those who do not yet qualify for a financial award will be given a priority opportunity to participate in capacity building programs offered by the Nashville Business Incubation Center (NBIC), Corner to Corner and other resources.
Currently the program is accepting initial interest form submissions, which can be accessed here.
ISSUES
The Metro Budget, which passed in June, is now implemented for FY2025, beginning July 1. The budget is $3.3 billion, including a fully funded school budget that will continue tutoring and counseling programs formerly funded with federal COVID dollars, and it provides $30 million for affordable housing. The budget also includes a 4% cost of living adjustment (COLA) for all Metro employees, as well as merit increases for almost all employees. The council’s substitute budget added a number of enhancements to the mayor’s budget based on public input through the budget process. Additions include more funding to the Public Defender and IDEA for indigent defense, General Sessions Court for eviction prevention, Office of Family Safety, expansion of the REACH program, childcare initiatives, animal shelter, and violence reduction. There is no increase in the property tax of $3.254 per $100 of assessed value. The full operating budget can be reviewed at the Citizens Guide to the Budget and final substitute budget.
Metro Nashville’s Housing Division is developing a Unified Housing Strategy (UHS) that will set goals, outline strategies, and provide policy and program recommendations to advance access to affordable, safe, and stable housing for all Nashvillians.The UHS will build on other existing and on-going studies, including the 2021 Affordable Housing Task Force report, to provide detailed policy and program recommendations on how to increase housing security. The Housing Division has partnered with HR&A Advisors, Pillars Development, and MEPR Agency to support the development of the UHS. This summer the Housing Division invites input from stakeholders through Community Listening Sessions and stakeholder meetings. The Housing Division will continue hosting community listening sessions in July that are open to all residents. Please see below for information about those sessions.
- Tuesday, July 9, 11:30 a.m.-1:00 p.m. at the Main Library (615 Church Street)
- Thursday, July 11, 5:30 p.m.-7:00 p.m. at East Park Regional Community Center (600 Woodland Street)
- Thursday, July 18, 5:30 p.m.-7:00 p.m. at Bordeaux Branch Library (4000 Clarksville Pike)
Accommodations, including translation services, can be arranged by contacting Randi Semrick at randi.semrick@nashville.gov. The Housing Division has also partnered with more than a dozen community-based organizations – “UHS Community Ambassadors” – to hold listening sessions with target populations during June and July. Residents interested in joining a session hosted by a UHS Ambassador may contact the organization directly.
The Office of Homeless Services (OHS) is offering FREE cool rides, bus passes, and encampment support to those experiencing homelessness, during extreme heat. Along with bus passes, OHS is also deploying on-call rides to cool locations. Between 10:00am-4:00pm, people with no place to get out of the heat can call 615.844.3399. A shuttle will pick requesters up and take them to the Nashville Rescue Mission or other cool locations during extreme heat. Returns to the original locations are available as well. OHS Outreach workers are distributing bus passes and other supportive services and items, including sunscreen, cooling towels, bug spray, and water. OHS has already deployed 8 days of relief and support this summer and will continue on days when heat and humidity create dangerous conditions.
With summer comes an onslaught of mosquitoes, which are more than just a nuisance. Mosquitoes pose a serious health risk to our local communities. With many vector-borne diseases present in North America, it is important to limit mosquito populations with a fully integrated approach. The safest and most effective way to reduce mosquito populations is to consistently remove any standing water anywhere in your yard. This can include birdbaths, empty buckets, toys. Mosquitoes can reproduce in a surprisingly small amount of water, but denying them that tiny bit can stop the cycle. Another strategy is to bait them with a “Mosquito Bucket of Doom” It’s a quick, easy, cheap, and super-SAFE way to reduce the mosquito population in our yards. This is made from a bucket + water + handful of weeds + BTi dunk, which can be bought at any hardware store. The active ingredient is BTi, a bacteria found in the soil which targets only mosquitoes in their larval stage. Larvicides are far more effective than adulticides (the sprays). BTi will not harm any other creatures including birds, pets, most insects (except black flies and fungus gnats), and pollinators. Here’s the link to the DIY Bucket of Doom.
Metro is always looking for interested, qualified citizens to fill the Boards and Commissions that guide how Nashville grows and operates. Any voter registered in Davidson County is eligible to apply for a position through the Board portal at the Board and Commission website . There are openings coming up on the Agricultural Extension Board, Property Standards Board, Short Term Rental Appeals Board, Audit Board, Hospital Authority, Barnes Fund Commission, Mechanical, Plumbing, and Electrical Examiners Board, Convention Center Authority, and the Health and Education Board.
That’s the news for July. I hope everyone has a great holiday. Please let me know what issues are on your mind. Reach out to burkley.allen@nashville.gov or 615-383-6604. Sign up for my newsletter at www.burkley.org.
Wishing everyone Happy Celebrations!
Burkley Allen
Metro Council At-Large